The It Ain't Magic Science Blog

Cubes of brain tissue allow drug discovery without animals

Modeling the blood-brain-barrier with brains-in-a-cube allows drug testing without the need for animals.

Low-protein diet changes sperm and health of future offspring

Low-protein diets in male mice alter sperm and result in offspring that have metabolic problems like diabetes in adulthood.

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Memories are made of this ? ? – (Part 1)

Brain science ’round midnight episode 8: Thomas McHugh from the RIKEN Center for Brain Science discusses memories and the brain

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Are you “at risk” of being a habitual coffee drinker?

Several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are related to dietary habits, including coffee, tea, tofu, and yogurt consumption.

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Ethanol pretreated soil protects plants from drought

Pretreating soil with ethanol protected plants, including wheat and rice, from the adverse effects of water deprivation.

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Mutations, CRISPR, and spinocerebellar ataxia

Scientists discover that mutations causing the degenerative movement disorder spinocerebellar ataxia type 29 work by disrupting calcium release of neurons inside the brain.

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Latest research animations

Self-assembly of spider silk

This gut microbe might protect against diabetes and reduce insulin resistance

NEW: One-way hydrogel guides motion of tiny worms!

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Sphingolipid S1P: Potential new target for schizophrenia treatment

Sphingolipid S1P is reduced in brain white matter of people with schizophrenia, making S1P receptors a good target for new treatments.

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New rice fights off drought

Researchers have created drought resistant transgenic rice using a gene from a small Eurasian flowering plant

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Efficient and durable ultra-thin solar cells

Ultra-thin, flexible, organic solar cells that degrade less than 5 percent after 3,000 hours and an energy conversion ratio of 13%.

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CAPON links Alzheimer’s plaques to neurodegeneration

CAPON was found to link Aβ plaques and hippocampal neurodegeneration in mice, explaining how these two hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease are related.

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Gut bacteria double team worsens symptoms of multiple sclerosis

Joint activity of two gut bacteria leads to excessive MOG-specific T-cell activity and demyelination of neurons in the spinal cord of a mouse model of multiple sclerosis.

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A new type of cell death discovered in fly guts

A completely unknown type of cell death called “erebosis” has been discovered in the guts of the common fruit fly.

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Mar

Don’t know anything about RIKEN?

by adam phillips | What's Up With Us

Don’t know anything about RIKEN? We’ve made a new RIKEN booklet that should help!

Jan

Blocking obesity with a protein-sugar combination

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

Discovery of an enzyme that prevents obesity in mice through glycosylation of a protein involved fat-cell differentiation.

Dec

Robotic researcher to the rescue

by admin | Drop of science, Interviews

Masaki Watabe talks about automated robotic researchers, future robot rule, and scientific philosophy.

Dec

RIKEN Research Winter Issue

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

It’s almost the end of the year and a here’s an early holiday present! The winter issue of RIKEN Research is here, covering plant parasites, depression, atomic clocks, and more! Enjoy!

Dec

The geometry of consciousness is a multi-dimensional math trip

by admin | Research Highlight

Amanda Alvarez writes about how neuroscientists are studying consciousness with mathematics

Oct

Fall is here, and with it comes the latest issue of RIKEN Research. This issue covers tactile learning during sleep, supercomputers and simulations, solar cells, fly olfaction, tumor vaccines, and more

Sep

Locating social memories in the brain

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

Scientists have identified where social memories are stored in the brains of mice. Mice are forgotten because memories cannot be retrieved.

Sep

Big news in iPS cell transplants

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

iPS cell-derived retinal cells have been successfully transplanted from one monkey to another without need of immunosuppressant drugs.

Aug

In Japan, women in science seek allies, resources in push for gender equality

by admin | What's Up With Us

neuroamanda talks about gender equality for female scientists is Japan.

Opossums are the first genome edited marsupials

A new piezoelectronic microinjection method has allowed the first successful genome editing in marsupials: albino opossums.

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Talking science Illustration with Misaki Ouchida

Whether it’s bird anatomy or science cartoons, Masaki Ouchida can do it all. She spoke with us about her career in science illustration, from the US to Japan.

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Artificial gravity protects the immune system of mice in space

Mice who experienced artificial gravity on the ISS suffered less damage to their immune system (thymus) than weightless mice did.

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Why (mouse) mothers take risks to protect their infants

The calcitonin receptor and its ligand amylin act in the brain to motivate mouse mothers to protect their pups, even in risky/dangerous situations.

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Feb

Brain clock ticks differently in autism

by admin | Hot Off the Press

A new brain imaging study shows that autistic severity is linked to how long certain regions of the brain store information.

Dec

Supermassive black holes still dark and mysterious

by jens wilkinson | Hot Off the Press

For the first time, scientists have measured the strength of magnetic fields near supermassive black holes and something doesn’t add up.

Dec

Evolution of the inner ear: insights from jawless fish

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

A new story for inner ear evolution based on the developmental patterning found in hagfish, one of two extant jawless vertebrates and a link to the last common ancestor of modern jawed vertebrates.